Discovery: A new planet The changing shape of the solar system He stopped on something unexpected: not a point of light, but a fuzzy disk. He initially thought it was a comet, but observations over the next several days showed something amazing. A comet that bright would be quite close to the Sun, and thus move rather quickly against the background stars. This object was moving, but too slowly to be a comet. It was moving so slowly that its motion suggested it would have to be far from the Sun’s gravity, even farther away than Saturn – the farthest known planet. To be that bright and that far away, it had to be a planet. “And I will name him George...” Herschel had discovered the first new planet. Up until this point, astronomers had known of only five other planets in the solar system: Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn, which are visible to the naked eye. Herschel tried to name the new planet after his benefactor, King George III of England. It was eventually named Uranus, after the father of Saturn, to fit with the mythological naming scheme of the other planets.

What we can see today: The Hubble Space Telescope looks at Uranus Astronomers had actually seen Uranus many times before. It had been noted as early as 1690, when it was recorded as a star in the constellation Taurus. But only Herschel had made a telescope powerful enough to see Uranus was not a star. When the amateur astronomer tried to compare his observations with two professional astronomers, neither had telescopes powerful enough to confirm his find. Herschel’s discovery shook the astronomical world and thrilled the public. It earned him international fame and a paid astronomy job. People had imagined that other planets could exist in the solar system, but this was proof that more planets did exist. The solar system had just gotten bigger, and astronomy’s possibilities had expanded with it. The search for new planets was on. William Herschel Biography William Herschel Biography By Nola Taylor Redd, Space.com Contributor | September 4, 2012 01:51pm ET MORE Scouring the heavens with his sister, Caroline, Sir William Herschel discovered the planet Uranus and several moons around other gas giants.

In the course of his studies of the night sky, he also compiled a catalog of 2,500 celestial objects that is still in use today. But it wasn't until his mid-30s that he began to turn his eyes to the expanse above; he started his professional life as a musician. Astronomer William Herschel discovered the planet Uranus. Credit: Smithsonian Institution A musical beginning Born in Germany as Friedrich Wilhelm Herschel, the astronomer was the son of Anna Ilse Moritzen and Issak Herschel. His father was a military musician, and young William played in the same band in his early years. In 1759, Herschel left Germany for England, where he taught music before becoming an organist. In 1772, William's sister, Caroline, moved to England to live with her brother and train as a singer. During this time, Herschel's interest in astronomy grew significantly. He rented a small telescope, and his desire to own a larger instrument led him to the process of grinding and polishing his own mirrors. Caroline never married, but served as his assistant until Herschel's death.

She was the first woman to discover a comet, ultimately finding eight. She also discovered several deep-sky objects and was the first woman to be given a paid scientific position and to receive an honorary membership into the Royal Society. In 1788, at the age of 50, Herschel married the widow Mary Pitt. Their son, John, was born in 1792, and followed in his father's astronomical footsteps. Searching the skies On March 13, 1781, Herschel noticed a small object that, over the course of several nights, was slowly moving across the sky. At first he thought he had found a comet , but further observation revealed that the object was a planet. Herschel lobbied to name the new body 'Georgium Sidus', after King George III, but it was eventually named Uranus after the Greek god of the sky. As a result of his discovery, the monarch knighted Herschel and appointed him to the position of court astronomer. The attached pension allowed him to conclude his musical career and focus his full attention on the skies.

When Herschel was subsequently elected a member of the prestigious Royal Society, he received a copy of Charles Messier's "Catalog of Nebulae and Star Clusters," a list of diverse nebulae in the night sky. The catalog piqued his interest, and he began to examine the fuzzy objects. On Oct. 23, 1783, he began a sky survey of his own, standing on a ladder while peering through his telescope and describing the objects he saw to his sister, Caroline. By pointing the stationary telescope at a single strip of the sky, he was able to observe east-west bands over the course of the night. The next night, he would adjust his telescope to a higher or lower point and observe another parallel strip. Eventually, he examined the entire swatch of sky that could be seen over Great Britain. Over 20 years, he observed 2,500 new nebulae and star clusters and recorded them in "The General Catalogue of Nebulae." The catalog was eventually enlarged and renamed the "New General Catalogue," and many non-stellar objects are identified by their NGC numbers.

Of the 7,840 nebulae and clusters in the catalog today, 4,630 were discovered by Herschel and his son. In 1789, Herschel finished construction on 40-foot-long (12 meters) telescope, the largest of the day. But the unwieldy instrument came with a number of problems, and Herschel tended to use the smaller, 20-foot (6-meter) telescope. Appearing like a cyclops gazing off into space, Saturn's moon Mimas and its large Herschel Crater are profiled in this view from NASA's Cassini spacecraft taken on Feb. 13, 2010. Credit: NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute Herschel discovered several moons around the gas giants. In 1787, he discovered two moons around Uranus: Titania and Oberon. In 1789, using his larger telescope, he found Saturn' s sixth and seventh moons , Enceladus and Mimas.

[ Meet Mimas: Saturn's Death Star Moon ] In 1800, Herschel performed a simple experiment determining the temperature of the different colors of sunlight passed through a prism. He noticed the region just beyond the red color was even higher than light in the visible spectrum, and used his measurements to deduce the presence of what is now known to be infrared radiation. The European Space Agency's infrared space observatory was subsequently named for him. Herschel proposed the name " asteroids " for the large bodies discovered in 1801. He was elected vice president of the newly formed Royal Astronomical Society in 1820 and president the following year. His last published paper cataloged 145 double stars . Herschel died in England on Aug. 25, 1822, at the age of 84. Craters on the moon, Mars, and Mimas are named for the astronomer. The asteroid 2000 Herschel bears his name, and the symbol for the planet Uranus features the capital letter H in his honor.

— Nola Taylor Redd William Herschel: the Man Who Discovered Uranus By Carolyn Collins Petersen Updated November 15, 2016. Sir William Herschel was an accomplished astronomer who not only contributed volumes of work that astronomers use today, but also composed some pretty hip music for his time! He was a true "do-it-yourselfer", building more than one telescope during his career. Herschel was fascinated with double stars . These are stars in close orbits with each other, or that appear close to one another. Along the way, he also observed nebulae and star clusters. He eventually began publishing listings of all the objects he observed. One of Herschel's most famous discoveries was the planet Uranus. He was so familiar with the sky that he could easily notice when something seemed out of place. He noticed that there was a dim "something" that seemed to move slowly across the sky. Many observations later, he determined it ws a planet. His discovery was the first one of a planet that had been noted since ancient times. For his work, Herschel was elected to the Royal Society and made Court Astronomer by King George III.

continue reading below our video 10 Facts About the Titanic That You Don't Know That appointment brought him income he could use to continue his work and build new and better telescopes. It was a good gig for a skygazer of any age! Early Life William Herschel was born on November 15, 1738 in Germany and brought up as a musician. He began composing symphonies and other works as a student. As a young man, he worked as a church organist in England. Eventually his sister Caroline Herschel joined him. For a time, they lived in a house in Bath, England, which still stands today as a museum of astronomy. Herschel met up with another musician who was also a math professor in Cambridge and astronomer. That sparked his curiosity about astronomy, which led to his first telescope. His observations of double stars led to studies of multiple star systems, including the motions and separations of the stars in such groupings. He catalogued his discoveries and continued to search the skies from his home in Bath. Ultimately he ended up re-observing many of his discoveries again to check their relative positions.

In Over time, he managed to find more than 800 new objects in addition to observing already-known objects, all using a telescope he built. Ultimately, he published three major listings of astronomy objects: Catalogue of One Thousand New Nebulae and Clusters of Stars in 1786, Catalogue of a Second Thousand New Nebulae and Clusters of Stars in 1789, and Catalogue of 500 new Nebulae, Nebulous Stars, and Clusters of Stars in 1802. His listings, which his sister also worked on with him, eventually became the basis for the New General Catalog (NGC) that astronomers still use today. Finding Uranus Herschel's discovery of the planet Uranus was almost entirely a matter of luck. In 1781, as he was continuing his search for double stars, he noticed that one tiny point of light had moved. He also noticed that it wasn't quite star-like, but more disk-shaped. Today, we know that a disk-shaped point of light in the sky is almost certainly a planet. Herschel observed it a number of times to make sure of his finding.

Orbital calculations pointed to the existence of an eighth planet, which Herschel named after King George the III (his patron). It became known as the "Georgian Star" for a time. In France, it was called "Herschel". Eventually the name "Uranus" was proposed, and that's what we have today. Caroline Herschel: William's Observing Partner William's sister Caroline came to live with him after the death of their father in 1772, and he immediately had her join him in his astronomy pursuits. She worked with him to build telescopes, and eventually began doing her own observing. She discovered eight comets , as well as the galaxy M110, which is a smaller companion to the Andromeda Galaxy, and a number of nebulae. Eventually, her work caught the attention of the Royal Astronomical Society and she was honored by that group in 1828. After Herschel's death in 1822, she continued to do her astronomical observations and expand his catalogues. In 1828, she was also given an award by the Royal Astronomical Society.

Their legacy of astronomy was carried on by William's son, John Herschel. Herschel's Museum Legacy Herschel Museum of Astronomy in Bath, England , where he lived part of his life, remains dedicated to preserving the memory of the work done by William and Caroline Herschel. It features his discoveries, including Mimas and Enceladus (circling Saturn), and two moons of Uranus: Titania and Oberon. The museum is open to visitors and tours. There is a renaissance of interest in William Herschel's music, and a recording of his most popular works is available . His astronomy legacy lives on in the catalogs that record his years of observations. Who Discovered Uranus (and How Do You Pronounce It)? Who Discovered Uranus (and How Do You Pronounce It)? By Nola Taylor Redd, Space.com Contributor | November 30, 2012 12:14pm ET MORE Did you ever meet a person and wonder what their parents were thinking when they picked out their child's name? Many people may do the same when they are required to give a presentation on the seventh planet in the solar system.

But just how do you pronounce the name of the smallest gas giant ? How did Uranus get its name? The first six planets in the solar system have been visible to observers throughout human history and were named for Roman gods. But because it orbits so far from the sun , Uranus was not visible with the naked eye. Astronomer William Herschel discovered the planet Uranus. Credit: Smithsonian Institution Sir William Herschel found the seventh planet on March 13, 1781, while scouring the night sky for comets; he initially thought he'd discovered another icy body. When it came time to propose a moniker, he suggested naming it for his patron, King George III, which would have made it Georgium Sidus, or George's Star. But the name was not widely appreciated outside of England. "Herschel," after its discoverer, was also suggested, as was "Neptune." Ultimately, German astronomer Johann Elert Bode named the planet after an ancient Greek god of the sky. Bode argued that as Saturn was the father of Jupiter, the new planet should be named for the father of Saturn.

(Uranus is also the only planet to be named after a Greek god rather than a Roman one.) Bode's colleague, Martin Klaproth, supported his choice and named his newly discovered element "uranium." Can you pronounce Uranus (without snickering)? Most people are taught that the name of the tilted planet sounds like "your-anus," a pronunciation sure to elicit snickers. It seems particularly humorous when you discuss the methane composition of Uranus , or you want to talk about how hot Uranus is . (You know you smiled a little.) According to NASA, most scientists say YOOR-un-us. Unfortunately, because it is so rarely heard outside the walls of academia, it almost seems to call even more attention to the avoided pronunciation. — Nola Taylor Redd, SPACE.com Contributor Related: William Herschel, Discovered Uranus - 1781 - Timeline Index William Herschel, Discovered Uranus - 1781 William Herschel, Discovered Uranus - 1781 Sir Frederick William Herschel was a German-born British astronomer and composer who became famous for discovering Uranus. He also discovered infrared radiation and made many other discoveries in astronomy.

He played the cello besides the oboe and, later, the organ. During a concert in 1767, Herschel showed off his versatility by performing an oboe concerto, violin concerto and harpsichord sonata. He composed numerous musical works, including 24 symphonies and many concertos, as well as some church music. Apart from a few oboe concertos, his music is largely forgotten today. Herschel's music led him to an interest in mathematics, and thence to astronomy. This interest grew stronger after 1773, and he built some telescopes and made the acquaintance of Nevil Maskelyne. In the spring of 1781, William Herschel discovered the planet Uranus, using a homemade telescope in the back garden of his house in New King Street, in Bath. He called the new planet the 'Georgian star' after King George III, which also brought him favour; the name didn't stick, however: in France, where reference to the British king was to be avoided if possible, the planet was known as 'Herschel' until the name 'Uranus' was universally adopted.

The same year, Herschel was awarded the Copley Medal and elected a Fellow of the Royal Society. In 1782, he was appointed "The Kingï¿½s Astronomer" and he and his sister subsequently moved to Datchet (then in Buckinghamshire but now in Berkshire) on 1 August 1782. He continued his work as a telescope maker, selling a number of them to other astronomers. More on this Website William Hershel discovers Uranus - Mar 13, 1781 - HISTORY.com William Hershel discovers Uranus Publisher A+E Networks The German-born English astronomer William Hershel discovers Uranus, the seventh planet from the sun. Herschel’s discovery of a new planet was the first to be made in modern times, and also the first to be made by use of a telescope, which allowed Herschel to distinguish Uranus as a planet, not a star, as previous astronomers believed. Herschel, who was later knighted for his historic discovery, named the planet Georgium Sidus, or the “Georgian Planet,” in honor of King George III of England.

However, German astronomer Johann Bode proposed the name “Uranus” for the celestial body in order to conform to the classical mythology-derived names of other known planets. Uranus, the ancient Greek deity of the heavens, was a predecessor of the Olympian gods. By the mid-19th century, it was also the generally accepted name of the seventh planet from the sun. The planet Uranus is a gas giant like Jupiter and Saturn and is made up of hydrogen, helium, and methane. The third largest planet, Uranus orbits the sun once every 84 earth years and is the only planet to spin perpendicular to its solar orbital plane. In January 1986, the unmanned U.S. spacecraft Voyager 2 visited the planet, discovering 10 additional moons to the five already known, and a system of faint rings around the gas giant. Related Videos Sir William Herschel | British-German astronomer | Britannica.com Sir William Herschel Alternative Title: Friedrich Wilhelm Herschel Sir William Herschel Galileo Sir William Herschel, original name Friedrich Wilhelm Herschel (born Nov. 15, 1738, Hannover , Hanover—died Aug.

25, 1822, Slough , Buckinghamshire , Eng.), German-born British astronomer, the founder of sidereal astronomy for the systematic observation of the heavens. He discovered the planet Uranus, hypothesized that nebulae are composed of stars, and developed a theory of stellar evolution. He was knighted in 1816. Sir William Herschel, detail of an oil painting by L. Abbott, 1785; in the National Portrait … Courtesy of the National Portrait Gallery, London Early life. Herschel’s father was an army musician. Following the same profession, the boy played in the band of the Hanoverian Guards. After the French occupation of Hanover in 1757, he escaped to England , where at first he earned a living by copying music . But he steadily improved his position by becoming a music teacher, performer, and composer, until in 1766 he was appointed organist of a fashionable chapel in Bath , the well-known spa. By this time, the intellectual curiosity he had acquired from his father led him from the practice to the theory of music, which he studied in Robert Smith’s Harmonics.

From this book he turned to Smith’s A Compleat System of Opticks, which introduced him to the techniques of telescope construction and whetted his appetite for viewing the night sky. Combining obstinacy with boundless energy, William was not content to observe the nearby Sun, Moon , and planets, as did nearly all astronomers of his day, but was determined to study the distant celestial bodies as well, and he realized he would need telescopes with large mirrors to collect enough light, larger, in fact, than opticians could supply at reasonable cost. He was soon forced to grind his own mirrors. They were ground from metal disks of copper, tin, and antimony in various proportions. In 1781 his ambitions outran the capacities of the local foundries, and so he prepared to cast molten metal into disks in the basement of his own home; but the first mirror cracked on cooling, and on the second attempt the metal ran out onto the flagstones, after which even he accepted temporary defeat. His later and more successful attempts produced ever-larger mirrors of superb quality—his telescopes proved far superior even to those used at the Greenwich Observatory.

He also made his own eyepieces, the strongest with a magnifying power of 6,450 times. At Bath, he was helped in his researches by his brother Alexander, who had come from Hanover, and his sister, Caroline, who was his faithful assistant through much of his career. News of this extraordinary household began to spread in scientific circles. He made two preliminary telescopic surveys of the heavens. Then, in 1781, during his third and most complete survey of the night sky, William came upon an object that he realized was not an ordinary star . Britannica Stories Ringling Bros. Folds Its Tent It proved to be the planet Uranus , the first planet to be discovered since prehistoric times. William became famous almost overnight. His friend Dr. William Watson , Jr., introduced him to the Royal Society of London, which awarded him the Copley Medal for the discovery of Uranus, and elected him a Fellow. Watson also helped him to secure in 1782 an annual pension of £200 from George III . He could thus give up music and devote himself exclusively to astronomy.

At this time William was appointed as an astronomer to George III, and the Herschels moved to Datchet, near Windsor Castle . Although he was 43 years old when he became a professional astronomer, William worked night after night to develop a “natural history” of the heavens. A fundamental problem for which Herschel’s big telescopes were ideally suited concerned the nature of nebulae , which appear as luminous patches in the sky. Some astronomers thought they were nothing more than clusters of innumerable stars the light of which blends to form a milky appearance. Others held that some nebulae were composed of a luminous fluid. When William’s interest in nebulae developed in the winter of 1781–82, he quickly found that his most powerful telescope could resolve into stars several nebulae that appeared “milky” to less well equipped observers. He was convinced that other nebulae would eventually be resolved into individual stars with more powerful instruments. This encouraged him to argue in 1784 and 1785 that all nebulae were formed of stars and that there was no need to postulate the existence of a mysterious luminous fluid to explain the observed facts.

Nebulae that could not yet be resolved must be very distant systems, he maintained; and, since they seem large to the observer, their true size must indeed be vast—possibly larger even than the star system of which the Sun is a member. By this reasoning, William was led to postulate the existence of what later were called “island universes” of stars. Theory of the evolution of stars. Britannica Lists & Quizzes Editor Picks: Exploring 10 Types of Basketball Movies In order to interpret the differences between these star clusters, it was natural for William to emphasize their relative densities, which he did by contrasting a cluster of tightly packed stars with others in which the stars were widely scattered. These formations showed that attractive forces were at work: with the passage of time, he maintained, widely scattered stars would no doubt condense into one or more tightly packed clusters. In other words, a group of widely scattered stars was at an earlier stage of its development than one whose stars were tightly packed. Thus, William made change in time, or evolution, a fundamental explanatory concept in astronomy.

In 1785 he developed a cosmogony—a theory concerning the origin of the universe: the stars originally were scattered throughout infinite space , in which attractive forces gradually organized them into even more fragmented and tightly packed clusters. Turning then to the system of stars of which the Sun is part, he sought to determine its shape on the basis of two assumptions: (1) that with his telescope he could see all the stars in our system, and (2) that within the system the stars are regularly spread out. Both of these assumptions he subsequently had to abandon. But in his studies he gave the first major example of the usefulness of stellar statistics in that he could count the stars and interpret this data in terms of the extent in space of the Galaxy’s star system. Other astronomers, cut off from the evidence by the modest size of their telescopes and unwilling to follow William in his bold theorizing, could only look on with varying degrees of sympathy or skepticism . Astronomy and Space Quiz In 1787 the Herschels moved to Old Windsor, and the following year to nearby Slough, where William spent the rest of his life.

Night after night, whenever the Moon and weather permitted, he observed the sky in the company of Caroline, who recorded his observations. On overcast nights, William would post a watchman to summon him if the clouds should break. Often in the daytime, Caroline would summarize the results of their work while he directed the construction of telescopes, many of which he sold to supplement their income. His largest instrument, too cumbersome for regular use, had a mirror made of speculum metal, with a diameter of 122 centimetres (48 inches) and a focal length of 12 metres (40 feet). Completed in 1789, it became one of the technical wonders of the 18th century. Connect with Britannica Facebook Twitter YouTube Instagram Pinterest William’s achievement, in a field in which he became a professional only in middle life, was made possible by his own total dedication and the selfless support of Caroline. He seems not to have considered the possibility of marriage until after the death in 1786 of a friend and neighbour, John Pitt, whose widow, Mary, was a charming and pleasant woman.

Before long, William proposed marriage; he and Mary would live in the Pitt house, while Caroline would remain at Observatory House in Slough. But Mrs. Pitt was shrewd enough to realize that William’s commitment would be to Observatory House, which they made their principal home after their marriage on May 8, 1788. William continued his labour in astronomy, but as the rigours of observing took their toll of William’s health, he came to appreciate more and more the comforts that Mary’s sensible management brought to his home. Theory of the structure of nebulae. William’s grand concept of stellar organization received a jolt on Nov. 13, 1790, when he observed a remarkable nebula, which he was forced to interpret as a central star surrounded by a cloud of “luminous fluid.” This discovery contradicted his earlier views. Hitherto William had reasoned that many nebulae that he was unable to resolve (separate into distinct stars), even with his best telescopes, might be distant “island universes” (such objects are now known as galaxies).

He was able, however, to adapt his earlier theory to this new evidence by concluding that the central star he had observed was condensing out of the surrounding cloud under the forces of gravity . In 1811 he extended his cosmogony backward in time to the stage when stars had not yet begun to form out of the fluid. Trending Topics Opium Wars This example of William’s theorizing is typical of his thinking: an unrivalled wealth of observations interpreted by means of bold though vulnerable assumptions. For example, in dealing with the structural organization of the heavens, he assumed that all stars were equally bright, so that differences in apparent brightness are an index only of differences in distances. Throughout his career he stubbornly refused to acknowledge the accumulating evidence that contradicted this assumption. Herschel’s labours through 20 years of systematic sweeps for nebulae (1783–1802) resulted in three catalogs listing 2,500 nebulae and star clusters that he substituted for the 100 or so milky patches previously known. He also cataloged 848 double stars —pairs of stars that appear close together in space, and measurements of the comparative brightness of stars.

He observed that double stars did not occur by chance as a result of random scattering of stars in space but that they actually revolved about each other. His 70 published papers include not only studies of the motion of the solar system through space and the announcement in 1800 of the discovery of infrared rays but also a succession of detailed investigations of the planets and other members of the solar system. More about Sir William Herschel 18 References found in Britannica Articles Assorted References William Herschel Astronomer, Musician, Hero and Deserter? | Astronotes admin – February 24, 2012 Posted in: Planets Sir Frederick William Herschel is one of the most well-known and highly regarded historical astronomers but many may not know or realise there was more to his genius than his passion for astronomy. So it seems a closer look is required to try and map out the life of such a notable historical figure. William Herschel, German-British astronomer (image credit: via Wikimedia Commons) Herschel was born in Hanover, Germany on 15 November 1738.

His father, Issac Herschel was a genius in his own right but devoted his life to the study and practice of music and this is where Herschel’s exceptional life begins. Obviously like any father, Isaac taught Hershel, as well as his other siblings the art of music and helped and encouraged a passion for it to grow in them such as it did for him! Unfortunately of the ten brothers and sisters Herschel had, only six made it into adult life with four dying at very young ages. But this made them that much closer, especially Herschel and his sister Caroline. Hershel’s mind began its expansion, as stated before, within the field of music and undoubtedly, he excelled in it, joining his father in the Hanover Military Band. But there was a short break in his budding musical career when he joined the army at the outbreak of the Seven Years War . Now, William Herschel remains to this day a highly respected astronomer and musician, but arguably not so much a solider. After the particularly disastrous Battle of Hastenbeck in which he was not wounded, but had spent many nights in the cold damp conditions of trenches, he decided soldiering was not for him.

Essentially he committed the act of desertion! We do have to remember he was merely a teenage boy so his fear and actions may seem more understandable with hindsight. Nevertheless some historians and biographers ignore this little blip in Herschel’s early years or brush over the circumstances of his military departure to keep his memory untainted, but in my opinion it gives more insight into the mind of the astronomical genius. He successfully evaded detection and made it to the shores of England. His first few years in England were a struggle until the age of 22, when he was made organist in the parish church of Halifax. It was nothing but up for Herschel from then on. He was made organist at the fashionable and well regarded parish at Bath and it is here he would make his most noted discovery! A 1829 portrait of Caroline Herschel (Image credit: Agnes Clerke’s The Herschels and Modern Astronomy (1895)) Behind the scenes of these musical achievements and progression Herschel’s mathematic and astronomical mind was continuously growing. His sister, Caroline Herschel was to be his devoted assistant throughout his life and earn herself quite a notable career in astronomy herself.

A touching characteristic about Herschel is that he was also devoted to Caroline and after his father’s death he returned to Hanover to take his sister back to Bath with him, as theirmother didn’t care for education and poor Caroline was to spend her days being a maid! So Herschel essentially, became his little sister’s “knight in shining armour” and opened her life up to greatness, eventually becoming the first paid female astronomer! Herschel initially flirted with astronomy as a past-time and began making and selling his very own telescopes. The first large telescope he created was a 1.8m Gregorian reflector in 1773 and over the next decade Herschel would use these telescopes of his own creation to earn some extra income and leave his many marks in history. Over the next decade Herschel, with the assistance of Caroline began observing and surveying the phenomenon of double stars . They even went on to publish three different catalogues of their findings in 1782, 1785 and 1821. But it was during these hours of research and surveying that Herschel, alongside Caroline, made his most noted discovery!

On 13 March 1781 Hershel discovered the first planet since antiquity and he wanted to call it “Georgium Sidus,” (George’s Star) after King George III! Herschel did not name the planet Uranus , it was actually a man named Johann Elert Bode , a German astronomer who proposed the name of the planet be changed to Uranus to conform to the other planetary names being that of mythological origin. But more than likely it had more to do with the planet being named after an English king! None the less, King George enjoyed the brief idea of a planet being named after him and this flattery induced him to make Herschel the ‘Court Astronomer,’ a position which came with a very handsome £200 per annum! Herschel could now quit flirting with his passion for astronomy and completely immerse himself within it. Uranus was the beginning of Herschel’s discoveries and observations. In 1786 he moved to Slough and constructed a new 20 foot long telescope, which no doubt aided his claim in 1797 that he saw ‘rings’ around Uranus.

For two centuries Herschel’s observation was dismissed until an experiment in 1977 confirmed it to be true and Herschel, if he were alive, would get the last laugh! Herschel’s Last Laugh: the rings of Uranus (plus some of its moons) show up clearly in this particularly psychedelic false-colour image from the Hubble Space Telescope. (Image credit: NASA/ESA) As mentioned earlier Herschel was initially and continuously studying the phenomenon of double stars and indeed he made, yet another amazing discover. He discovered that these double where not just coincidentally side by side but rather physically linked binary star systems, thus for the first time, proving Isaac Newton’s Law of Gravitation was universal. Another of Herschel’s major discoveries was that of infrared radiation . In the year 1800 whilst observing the sun, Hershel became very interested in the heat that passed through the colour spectrum . So he set up and experiment using a glass prism and light, to which he found that the temperature increased in the spectrum from violet to red. But he continued the experiment to beyond the red of the spectrum, to what he called “calorific rays” and discovered it was even warmer.

Today this is called infrared and it is used in many exciting and revealing ways in our lives, from medical uses to expanding our universal knowledge. Enceladus, an icy Saturnian moon with subsurface water. In this image the moon’s surface is mainly illuminated by sunlight reflected off its primary. (Image credit: Cassini Imaging Team, SSI, JPL, ESA, NASA; Colour Composite: Gordan Ugarkovic) Hershel also discovered various moons in our solar system including Titania and Oberon that orbit Uranus, and in 1789, after building his biggest telescope, (40ft long with a 48 inch mirror) he discovered Enceladus and Mimas circling Saturn . Thanks to this monster telescope of the time, Herschel discovered even more objects in deep space including nebulae and star clusters, and along with Caroline he went on to catalogue and document around 5000 objects improving on Messier’s catalogue of a mere 100 or so! Unsurprisingly enough, Herschel even discovered galaxies including the galaxy NGC 2093 .

ESA’s Herschel IR space telescope (Image credit: ESA/ AOES Medialab) This constant stream of notable and impressive discoveries and recordings lead to Hershel being knighted in 1821 and, before his death, becoming president of the Royal Astronomical Society . Throughout his many years of research and discoveries Hershel did find a love on earth and married in 1788 to Mary Pitt. He only had one child with Mary named John and undoubtedly, he followed in his father’s astronomical footsteps, continuing his work and research long after Herschel’s death in 1822 at the age of 84. Herschel is buried in the Church of Saint Lawrence in Upton but astronomers still remember and respect the musical and astronomical genius today. He paved a very clear path in the sky that many have expanded on and his contribution to our ever expanding knowledge of the Universe has not gone unrewarded. He has had many honours bestowed upon him even long after his death, with craters on the Moon , Mars and Mimas named after him. An asteroid also bears the name of Herschel as well as the great honour of a deep space telescope called the Herschel Space Observatory .

But despite all his genius Hershel was human as we can see, from a scared young boy at war to a gallant hero to his sister, and there was a lot more to the man that discovered the “Georgian Planet!” (Article by Kerry Scullion, Education Support Officer) Herschel | Define Herschel at Dictionary.com Herschel [hur-shuh l, hair-] /ˈhɜr ʃəl, ˈhɛər-/ Spell Sir John Frederick William, 1792–1871, English astronomer. 2. his father, Sir William (Friedrich Wilhelm Herschel) 1738–1822, English astronomer, born in Germany. 3. Also, Hershel. a male given name. Dictionary.com Unabridged Examples from the Web for Herschel Expand Contemporary Examples British Dictionary definitions for Herschel Expand noun 1. Caroline Lucretia. 1750–1848, British astronomer, born in Germany, noted for her catalogue of nebulae and star clusters: sister of Sir William Herschel 2. Sir John Frederick William.

1792–1871, British astronomer. He discovered and catalogued over 525 nebulae and star clusters 3. his father, Sir (Frederick) William, original name Friedrich Wilhelm Herschel. 1738–1822, British astronomer, born in Germany. He constructed a reflecting telescope, which led to his discovery of the planet Uranus (1781), two of its satellites, and two of the satellites of Saturn. He also discovered the motions of binary stars Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd.

1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012 Herschel (hûr'shəl) Family of British astronomers led by Sir William Herschel (1738-1822), who discovered Uranus (1781) and cataloged more than 800 binary stars and 2,500 nebulae. His sister Caroline Herschel (1750-1848) discovered eight comets and several nebulae and star clusters, and published at least two astronomical catalogs which are still currently used. His son Sir John Frederick William Herschel (1792-1871) discovered 525 nebulae and pioneered celestial photography. Our Living Language : Brother and sister William Herschel and Caroline Herschel began their professional careers as musicians. Born in Germany, they moved to England, where Caroline became a soprano soloist in performances conducted by her brother.

William's background in music spurred him to study mathematics and astronomy, which he then taught his sister, and they each went on to produce a string of important scientific discoveries. William was the first astronomer to study binary stars and, while searching for comets in 1781, he discovered Uranus, the first new planet to be discovered since ancient times. He also discovered two satellites of Uranus (Titania and Oberon, 1787), and two of Saturn (Mimas and Enceladus, 1789-90). Caroline observed her first comet in 1786 and eventually discovered seven others, as well as nebulae and star clusters. King George III appointed William his Astronomer Royal in 1787, and Caroline was made assistant astronomer. After William's death, Caroline returned to Germany and published a catalog of 2,500 nebulae, for which the (British) Royal Astronomical Society awarded her its gold medal in 1828. The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.

Question: What is the name of the planet discovered in 1781 by William Herschel?
Answer: Uranus